Bringing the World to your Kitchen

Pineapple Horchata

This summer I’ve seen almost everything. Laughter in sad moments. Tears in happy moments. Life is a bumble-all-over-the place, as it should be when temperatures screech up into the 100’s.

What I haven’t seen? Purple-feathered dancing ladies.

This Pineapple Horchata is certainly the closest I’ll get to this sort of carnival fun.

And every summer should have a little carnival fun, don’t you think?

Carnaval in Managua, Nicaragua. Photo by Jorge Mejía peralta.

The recipe is a cooked horchata (homemade rice drink), different from the amazing no-cook Strawberry Almond Horchata we made for our Mexican Global Table. In this drink, the Pineapple skin and core simmers with the rice and water to extract maximum flavor. Then I added extra pieces of pineapple goodness to amp up the flavor.

The recipe is a cooked horchata (homemade rice drink), different from the amazing no-cook Strawberry Almond Horchata we made for our Mexican Global Table. In this drink, the Pineapple skin and core simmers with the rice and water to extract maximum flavor. Then I added extra pieces of pineapple goodness to amp up the flavor. Puree with a sprinkling of sugar and you’re done. Welcome to summer in a glass.

The recipe is a cooked horchata (homemade rice drink), different from the amazing no-cook Strawberry Almond Horchata we made for our Mexican Global Table. In this drink, the Pineapple skin and core simmers with the rice and water to extract maximum flavor. Then I added extra pieces of pineapple goodness to amp up the flavor. Puree with a sprinkling of sugar and you’re done. Welcome to summer in a glass.

Trim and core the pineapple, adding these pieces to a large pot. This is thrifty. This is smart. Sprinkle on the rice and water. Mix and simmer, covered, for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, chop the rest of the pineapple into bite-sized pieces (reserving some for garnish)

Remove the skin and core, then puree the rice water with up to 2 cups cubed pineapple. I used an immersion blender, but if you use a regular blender be careful – cool before blending. Strain the horchata and whisk together with as much sugar as you’d like. I used 1 cup.

You may drink this straight and it will be a smoothie consistency, or you can dilute it with water to make a thinner cocoction. Either way , add a spear of sweet pineapple, or several cubes.